(Courtesy of UMass Lowell) “South campus under construction”
Tristin Henson
Connector Staff
South Campus has been known for many things, but most recently, it has had a prominent discussion on construction. More specifically, construction on the lawn in between Weed/McGauvran/O’Leary. Every student who has a class on South Campus is aware of it, as the construction takes place front and center when students get out of their classes, get on/off the bus, go to the dining hall to eat or the library to study. The new design was stated to include a “completely redesigned open space with accessible walking paths, improved lighting and drainage, and stronger Wi-Fi coverage.” Many students were wondering how the idea for construction originally came about. Leanne Peters, Executive Director of Planning, Design & Construction, said that the main concern they initially were trying to tackle with the new design was drainage issues and crumbling concrete. In the process however, they noticed other problems, like accessibility, and said: “let’s use the opportunity to make it better.”
Konstantinos Zervas, Project Manager for Facilities Management, said the new design will include “better stormwater retention, improved accessibility routes, some landscaping” and “Wi-Fi infrastructure in place for future upgrades,” along with the improved lighting initially stated. When asked about how they felt about the process and design, Leanne said that she was “satisfied with the designing phase” and Konstantinos agreed, saying that he wishes this new plaza will be a “welcoming area for community,” and hopes that it will be able “to act as a platform for gatherings and events” in the future. Both voiced that they were not satisfied with the construction phase being delayed due to material delays, with the initial deadline being mid to late October.
On a similar note, many students have expressed their dislike of the passed construction deadline, specifically regarding how much space the construction has been taking up and how much inconvenience it has caused them. Phoenix Lewis, a clinical psychology and creative writing major who dorms on South, says, “I originally moved to Concordia for an easier time getting to class and to minimize time I spent walking because of my disability… more time ended up being spent instead.”
When asked if they liked the new design visually, and if it was something that they could see themselves walking through and hanging out in, most students expressed that they were happy that the new path was more accessible, but they would not see themselves enjoying the area all too often. In all the interviews, the main reasons for this were the new layout for walking paths and the missing gazebo. Tenderness Onyekwere, a nursing major who dorms on East, said that the new plaza looked “ugly and too modern, South is supposed to be kind of oldish 50’s buildings” and that the circle-like paths provided in the new design were “just an inconvenience… straight lines would be better for more momentum” when she was trying to get from the bus stop to Weed Hall and HSS (Manning Health & Social Sciences Building).
Sebastian Hutchison, a history major, as well as Tenderness, both cited the gazebo (apart from being “one of the nicer things on campus,” as Sebastian put it) as a place where people congregated and got a break from the rain when the weather was terrible.
When told about the material delays due to construction, the students understood that the university did not have control over it. Still, when the possible new timeline (the spring if the weather ends up being bad when the material comes in) was mentioned, all three students expressed great disdain. The Executive Director and Project Manager stressed that they wanted to maintain open communication with the public and that the public was free to contact them with questions about the construction. Students were asked what way would be best for the University to keep the public updated on this and other important projects/information, students cited Instagram, opt-in emails through the university, and town hall-esque meetings.
